On Monday, March 13, the Senate confirmed the appointment of Seema Verma as CMS Administrator in a 55-43 vote.

Verma is a respected healthcare industry consultant who made her mark by working to expand and restructure Medicaid in several states in accordance with the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Her style is unique, and somewhat controversial, in that she advocated for patient financial responsibility and work requirements as conditions of participation in Medicaid. She believes personal investment in these benefits translates into responsible healthcare users.

While the majority of her work experience falls under the Medicaid umbrella, the DME industry is hopeful that Verma will bring positive changes to the Medicare program. Two major priorities of interest to our industry will include stabilizing the Medicare Trust Fund and spurring meaningful changes to the competitive bidding program.

Now with the specific leadership appointments of Tom Price at HHS and Seema Verma at CMS, MiraVista predicts positive changes for DME suppliers.